We've been down this road before: JO foregos wrist surgery for rest and rehab

[Roy H.]

Because I think O'Neal soft and I don't think that it's been a coincidence that he has missed so many games after signing his huge $126 million contract. I think he became satisfied with being paid and isn't committed, which I want players to be.

Besides, if Yao, Oden or bynum was on the Celtics missing game, then I would be emotionally invested in them. They aren't so I'm not.

Well Jermaine hasn't been soft in a Celtics uniform, so I have no complaints about his time here other than I'd like to see him on the court more.

I don't think we should assign a moral value to injuries. Rondo is also pretty injury prone, I don't think you'd like it if people called him soft and "satisified" with his big contract.

"Soft" may not be the right word in my mind, but he hurt the team last year by deciding to "rest and rehab" rather than get surgery.  There's some suggestion that he's done the same thing in other places, although I don't know enough about the specifics.  Now, it seems like he may be doing that here.

The last part is based on speculation and on Danny's quote that "HE didn't want to get surgery", rather than a more diplomatic "He and the team doctors didn't think it would be helpful".  I get the sense that Danny was very, very frustrated by JO's choices last year -- it visibly showed -- and I think this might be more of the same.

Perhaps, but surgery isn't a magic bullet. I don't find myself reflexively siding with team doctor's over the player's on these sort of issues.

I mean supposedly they were begging KG to get his surgery earlier, but instead he wanted to rehab and try to play sooner (that year's playoffs) Jermaine's decision this past year was simiar if a bit different as the surgery on his knee would have still had him back for the end of the year.

I can give KG a pass because it was his first major injury.  Of course, the team doctors were ultimately proven right on this, and who knows, with an even healthier KG perhaps we win the 2010 championship.  However, again, it was his first major injury.

JO, on the other hand, has a history of injuries and a history of delayed surgeries.  I think a lot of us have a jaundiced eye regarding any decision he makes regarding avoiding surgery.

[ManUp]

The way I see it counting on JO is no different then counting on Shaq.

There is going to be an injury the question is just how bad and when.

Unfortunately I don't think there's a better center out there to be had.

[LooseCannon]

I've known several people in my life who have resisted the need for surgery.  As long as they view it as optional, they try to avoid it, even if they have had successful surgeries in the past.  Sometimes, it requires multiple doctors telling them they need surgery to live before they are willing to go under the knife.  No matter what the procedure is, no matter how routine, there's always a chance you don't wake up.

It would not surprise me if Jermaine O'Neal has a phobic reaction to surgery and that his willingness to come back for one more season hinged on a belief that he could avoid surgery.  I do think it's possible that he would have retired if surgery was absolutely necessary.